Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to network connection processing of a communication apparatus.
Description of the Related Art
It is a common practice for an image capturing apparatus such as a digital camera including a wireless communication apparatus to record, as a file, captured image data in a recording medium such as a memory card incorporated in or attached to the camera. Then, since image data has a file format, it can be easily exchanged via communications.
Furthermore, some wireless communication apparatuses incorporate a simple access point function. When the wireless communication apparatus activates the simple access point function, another apparatus detects the wireless communication apparatus as an access point, and participates in a network formed by the wireless communication apparatus. In this manner, even in an environment without any wireless network formed by an access point, wireless communication apparatuses can establish connections with each other.
Network parameters used when the wireless communication apparatus activates the simple access point function are not always set to assume constant values but are desirably changed as needed in terms of security.
For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2012-175160 describes a technique in which an encryption key for a home mode and that for a party mode are stored, and when the mode is switched by a user operation, a network corresponding to the stored encryption key is generated.
However, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2012-175160 does not consider cases in which, for example, the communication apparatus operates as a device connected to an external access point, and it can also operate as a simple access point.